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kneedeepincynade · 11 months ago

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As you all know, the festivities are coming, and as such, we are all experiencing a great deal of extra work,or in my case (sov), a great deal of academic hardship. So, despite my best efforts to publish between pauses and all that, it will still prove difficult to upload everything rapidly. Thank you all for the understanding

The post is machine translated

Translation is at the bottom

The collective is on telegram

🇨🇳 Oltre alla Visita di Stato del Presidente Xi Jinping in Vietnam, si sono verificati ulteriori eventi di grande importanza in questa settimana:

一 La 中央经济工作会议 - Conferenza Centrale sul Lavoro Economico, tenutasi a Pechino tra l'12月11日 e il 12月12日, per pianificare lo Sviluppo nel 2024 🚩

二 La continuazione del prezioso Lavoro Diplomatico del Compagno Zhang Jun alle Nazioni Unite, per la costruzione di un Consenso sempre più grande riguardante la necessità di un "Cessate il Fuoco" in Palestina, osteggiato da Israele, USA e i suoi vassalli in Europa 🕊

三 Il 中俄能源合作委员会第二十次会议 - 20° Incontro del Comitato per la Cooperazione Energetica tra Cina e Russia, a cui ha partecipato il Compagno Ding Xuexiang - Primo Vice-Premier della Repubblica Popolare Cinese 🇨🇳🤝🇷🇺

四 Il 中国-沙特-伊朗三方联合委员会第一次会议 - Primo Incontro della Commissione Tripartita Cina - Arabia Saudita - Iran, per la Discussione sulla Cooperazione tra le parti 🤝

五 Le continue provocazioni delle Filippine, genuflesse agli USA, in funzione anti-Cinese nel Mar Cinese Meridionale 😡

六 Il Settimo Pattugliamento Strategico Congiunto tra l'Esercito Popolare di Liberazione e le Forze Armate della Federazione Russa, nel Mar del Giappone e nel Mar Cinese Orientale 🌟

😍 Verranno trattati tutti con cura 🔍

🌸 Iscriviti 👉 @collettivoshaoshan 😘

🇨🇳 In addition to President Xi Jinping's State Visit to Vietnam, further events of great importance occurred this week:

一 The 中央经济工作会议 - Central Conference on Economic Work, held in Beijing between 12月11日 and 12月12日, to plan Development in 2024 🚩

二 The continuation of the precious Diplomatic Work of Comrade Zhang Jun at the United Nations, for the construction of an ever greater Consensus regarding the need for a "Ceasefire" in Palestine, opposed by Israel, the USA and its vassals in Europe 🕊

三 The 中俄能源合作委员会第二十次会议 - 20th Meeting of the China-Russia Energy Cooperation Committee, attended by Comrade Ding Xuexiang - First Vice-Premier of the People's Republic of China 🇨🇳🤝🇷🇺

四 The 中国-沙特-伊朗三方联合委员会第一次会议 - First Meeting of the China - Saudi Arabia - Iran Tripartite Commission, for the Discussion on Cooperation between the Parties 🤝

五 The continuous provocations of the Philippines, kneeling to the USA, in an anti-Chinese function in the South China Sea 😡

六 The Seventh Joint Strategic Patrol between the People's Liberation Army and the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea 🌟

😍 They will all be treated with care 🔍

🌸 Subscribe 👉 @collectivoshaoshan 😘

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ceo-of-masturbation · 5 months ago

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Curie Com. MSS

"As some say, when you need to solve a problem, use a gun. And when it doesn't work - use more gun! Those custom-made sentries/turrets/defensive machines were bade by Pratt in small quantities, but some managed to assemble their own copies and use them to defend their tactical points. You can even customize it to your heart's (or arsenal's) desire and needs! Goggles, guitar and hardhat needed to buy separately. Also don't try to whack it, as some nerds tried to do... It won't upgrade them or repair them. I am bit suprised that I need to explain this nearly every time." - Vendor's description for MSS.

MSS (Modulatory Specialized Sentry) or usually refered as "sentry" or "settie" by some is a equipment avialable for use to player.

Origins

MSS is made by Curie Com. and judging by some markings, is a experimental turret for surveying the terrain and neutralization of hostiles. In "Ins and Outs of Business" vol. 20 "Cyborgs and Mechs - Possible future of robotics", it is mentioned, that Curie Com. is trying to create a turret for NATO, due to promise of possible funding and future contracts for it's members. It's unknown what results are, since judging by dates on original turrets, they were made around 2017 to early 2021. In magazine, there are suggestions of possible moving sentries existing as early prototypes, but most sentries are seen being put on drones, small autonomous robots or on some more special and secret machines. MSS's name comes from it's structure allowing for fully customizable design, allowing for easy transport and ability to carry most of firearms. Interestingly enough, MSS states to be fairly light and feeling like a plastic, which along with markings "3DPS PATTERNS OWNED BY CURIE COMPANY DO NOT COPY" and "LIGHTWEIGHT MATERIAL CUSTOM PRINTED, BE CAREFUL PLZ" suggests, that MSS (at least it's main body) is made with 3D printers. Markings also say, that original turret was made in San Diego division of Curie Com. and later assembled in Philadelphia.

2. Design

MSS's design is a attempt at blending futuristic and modern. By default it uses "light carry" tripod, "eco-compact" shield and "Intruder 200-v" targeting system. It has several "shells" which can be selected, "Waifu" - a fairly bean-shaped small sentry with two weapon racks and aiming system on the center of the body, "Dommy" - a crude looking, alien-like body with one small diode and a fairly small gun rack, and "Cutie - a more vintage styled with more rounded and cartoony-esque style. There also exist custom sentries made fully on their own. Depending on enemies main characters will go against, their sentry design might vary. Gangs tend to use improvised sentries made from searchlights and very simple 360 mechanisms, PMC's use more military-themed in camos and resembling mini anti-air turrets with cameras on top, along with The Syndicate using turrets made in a style to retro and coloring it (color depending on it's firearm type, for example green for pistols, yellow for carbines, etc.) and some of them also tend to have small LED lights or stickers put on as a decoration. There are also specialized sentries:

-Stealth = masked sentries, used for secret locations and places needing less visible security

-Heavy = sentries modified for more lethal, but heavier equipment such as remote rocket systems, anti-air machine guns or even bigger turrets akin to ones used for tanks or warships

-Trap = sentries hidden in ceiling, floors, walls or even some less suspisious enviroment which can be tripped of by laser detectors, pressure plate, tripping wire or camera's sensors

3. Overview

Sentries are useful when you need protection, but your teammates are too busy. Their main advantage is fair amount of customization and their universal grabbers, which can be adjusted to any weapon. When using one, main thing to take into consideration is it's position: sentries can rotate 360 degrees in any direction, but it can still not reach target, if neither it's cover is too high or reach distance is too short. You need to check on the sentry from time to time as well, to ensure it's safety and ammunition are alright. Going up against a sentries is also fairly challenging. While rifles and explosives are best to deal with them, they tend to be protected by hostiles in most of the scenarios. One can neither take them down silenty, which is fairly hard, or eliminate both hostiles and the sentries. Sentries tend to search area for threats, so sneaking around tends to be a fairly familiar, just like when you go up against to more flesh-and-bone hostiles. The main weakness of sentry is it's lack of mobility. So, you can just find alternative entrance and get around it without raising it's suspision. There will be scenarios, where sentries will be activated already and searching for you actively. In that case, one needs to get around quickly and search for cover along with trying to take shots at exposed pieces to chirp away some health.

4. Behind the scenes

MSS's shells and derivative designs are based off various sentries from various games:

Cutie's design resembles sentry from Team Fortress 2. Main diffrence being mostly main guns changing and more customizable look.

Dommy's look resembles turrets used by Combine in Half-Life 2. The only diffrence being equipment mounts on the sides and coloring.

Waifu has a shape and look paying homage to Turrets from Portal 2. Here main diffrence is color scheme and some components have more custom look.

Guerilla is based off makeshift sentry seen in Unturned, down to the main body being from the spotlight. Mounting and main gun section are more improvised, however.

Tracker looks like turrets seen in Payday 2. But when comparing the two, Tracker is much bigger and it has a body looking more refined along with small wheels visible on the tripod.

Cutie, Dommy and Waifu's names and designs are nods to infamous anthrosentries made for SFM. Their names also come from how those sentries were depicted. One can even find stickers looking like their recreations, but furrified (Cutie resembles a coyote, Dommy looks like a moth and Waifu has some similiarities with a protogen).

Few others Anthro TF2 buildings can also be seen in few paintings: "Elecro Crush", "Cybernetic Warfare", "Future of Combat and "Death Metal". There are also small stickers resembling them, which can be seen on some special weapon designs.

Cutie shell has marking saying "CONAGHER CUSTOMS", "MADE IN BEECAVE" and "ASSEMBLED IN TEXAS". This is reference to TF2's Engineer, since he is from Beecave, Texas. Conagher is a robotics company, whose name comes from Engineer's full name - Dell Conagher. MSS's description further references Engi, since his iconic look comes from his goggles and harhat. Guitar comes from Engie's skills at playing guitar. Descritption also jokes on how in TF2, to upgrade or repair the sentry, Engineer needs to whack it.

Dommy shell has few markings in polish, czech, ukrainian, russian, english and german. There are also markings "C-17 COMMERCIAL USE", "KOMBINAT DESIGN", "MADE IN BULGARIA" and "EXPORT VERSION". Markings make futher references to Half-Life with C-17 referencing City 17, main setting of Half-Life 2. Kombinat is polish translation of the Combine from Half-Life universe in polish language. "MADE IN BULGARIA" comes from City 17 being fairly based off bulgarian cities. Nearly all languages used in smaller markings comes from both Half-Life 2's setting of eastern europe and how Half-Life 2 is fairly popular in those countries.

Waifu's marking states, that shell's name is P-12. This comes from two main Portal games. One of special sprays is called "Companion" and it has hearts and small circles resembling Aperture logos, it's name referencing Companion Cube. When "Loudmouth" or "Hormonal" sprays are applied, "Loudmouth" will make sentry resemble Wheatley from Portal 2, while "Hormonal" will resemble looks of GLADoS from Portal 1. Name "Hormonal" comes from fair share of players developed... feelings for GLADoS. It's description ("It wll make your hormonal teenager do things, like drawing something worth 50k at least") is a reference to "hormonal teenager" meme from r/okbuddyblacklung and ''worth 50k" being a joke related to verbalase spending 50k on softcore animation, which became a meme poking fun at ridiculous amount of money spent on it.

Tracker has ''smile for camera :)" written above the laser sight on 'Bog County' spray. This might be a nod to how Deadpool's Desert Eagles in live-action movies have "SMILE Wait For The Flash" written around area of barrel and bore. It could also come from a meme related to Shrek movies, since name and description (If some asks you what are you doing in their swamp, just show them this toy to get 'em into the matter.) seem to refer Shrek even more.

#concept #writing #design #fictional #gun

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martacontextualstudies · 11 months ago

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Project 03 - The Word for World is Forest

In The Word for World is Forest, Ursula Le Guin explores various ecological themes as well as social and political issues and how they correlate with the natural world. In her book, Le Guin writes about a fictional planet that becomes inhabited by humans. As one of their people (The Athshean’s) get attacked and killed, they fight against them to leave their planet. However, being peaceful citizens, their natural world is severely affected by the mass destruction and remnants of war. We can see this when she writes ‘My city was destroyed by the yumens when they cut down the trees in that region… we went in daylight, and killed the yumens of Kelme Deva with arrows and hunting- lances, and burned their city and their engines.’ I think her use of a made up world is really significant in the way it mirrors our real one. Another reason for this significance is her own past experiences, including her negative exposure to the Vietnam War and her strong anti-colonial and anti-military outlook.

Le Guin also brushes on the concept of culture and political views by linking her fantasy world to a theme of colonisation and oppression. In an article written by Stefan Raets, Kat Hopper and Tadiana Jones, they mention ‘the contrast between two opposing worldviews’ between the humans and the Athshean’s and their cultural identity. They continue to write that ‘some characters are more aware of the Athsgean’s cultural identity, and others treat them as little more than animals or slaves.’ The theme of colonisation and oppression, at the time, was quite prevalent, so it made sense for her to include the narrative of the two themes in her work.

Le Guin’s well crafted, protest novella, also features commonly used undertones of humanity. She looks through the different viewpoints of each character and really shows the difference between each one and how they think and view the world. She successfully does this as she allows the reader to think deeper about what it means to be human. What defines us as human and how we see each other. I think this is critical as she builds on the idea that each human sees things differently, even in regards to what is considered right or wrong. I think this idea of humanity within her novel, relates closely to the point in my previous paragraph, as she successfully uses a connotation of non-violence to fight against the idea of colonialism and to push her agenda of fighting against it. She almost questions whether violence is justified or not and it brings me back to the point of how she uses humanity in her text to portray the different stances that humans have towards violence, and how acceptable it is to them. Phil Svitek and Marisa Serfani, build on this point in their book discussion, bringing up the idea of ‘every action has an opposite or equal reaction’. This is crucial as the Athshean’s ended up with their natural world destroyed from the war against the yumens, despite them not being violent people. What had caused them to become violent was the injustice that the yumens placed upon them after hurting and killing one of their kind. It makes you question, why and when is violence justified?

My print in response to Le Guin’s, The Word for World is Forest, was inspired by the opening paragraph in chapter two, stating, ‘ALL the colours of rust and sunset, brown-reds and pale greens, changed ceaselessly in the long leaves as the wind blew. The roots of the copper willows, thick and ridged, were moss-green down by the running water, which like the wind moved slowly…’ I felt most inspired by this part of the novel to focus my print on, as I felt it was the first part of the made-up universe that described a natural setting we could easily find in our real world. I liked the idea of the ‘rust’, ‘brown-red and pale green’ ‘sunset’, and decided to incorporate this colour scheme into my print. For my imagery I wanted to portray it similarly to how Le Guin described the setting, but decided to incorporate images of birds as they often symbolise new beginnings, hope, freedom and peace. I think this is important as Le Guin’s anthropological upbringing and her interest in Taoism, anti-violence and ecological awareness really falls under this symbolism.

In conclusion, I think Le Guin’s protest novel is a really successful piece of fantasy writing, specifically because of how she takes her real life experiences and the topics she is passionate about or fights against, and paints them in a fantasy-like realm which mirrors our own. I think they way she combined these social and political issues that we as a humanity face, with the use of nature and ecology, really cements her political and social viewpoints, in a way that isn't too aggressive or outlandish, and allows more people to agree or related, or ponder deeply at how we live in our real world, and how not much is different to what occurs on the planet of Athshe.

The Word for World is Forest: A powerful, somewhat allegorical tale | Fantasy Literature: Fantasy and Science Fiction Book and Audiobook Reviews

Stefan Raets, Kat Hopper and Tadiana Jones. (24th November 2017)

The Word for World Is Forest: Ecology, Colonialism, and the Protest Movement | Tor.com

Sean Guynes (5th August 2020)

The Word For World Is Forest (Ursula K Le Guin) In-Depth Book Discussion - YouTube

Phil Svitek, Marisa Serfani. (23rd January 2023)

The British Empire in the 19th Century | Máire ní Fhlathúin (gale.com)

ní Fhlathúin, Máire: "The British Empire in the Nineteenth Century." 19th Century UK Periodicals. Detroit: Gale, 2008.

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theangstking · 2 years ago

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I posted 16,038 times in 2022

That's 10,640 more posts than 2021!

45 posts created (0%)

15,993 posts reblogged (100%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@amazonprimebox

@ultimate-queen-of-fandoms2

@peridot-the-kitten

@soijusthavetoask

@mxcrowe

I tagged 570 of my posts in 2022

#sky of royals - 23 posts

#the stars' council - 16 posts

#royals interacting - 7 posts

#ddau rp adventures - 6 posts

#!!! - 5 posts

#oh - 5 posts

#i - 4 posts

#nsft - 4 posts

#ceph writes - 4 posts

#pokemon - 4 posts

Longest Tag: 134 characters

#but it's actually relatively recently made and very good and once you realize it's not actually classical it's got this distinct style

My Top Posts in 2022:

anyone want Drunz?

focusing on Punz having a bunch of rings, and the stories behind some of them. as well as giving Dream a few rings.

a continuation of our previous fic! can likely be read separately but we highly recommend reading the first part in the series first

link in the replies!

16 notes - Posted September 6, 2022

we will not be reblogging or posting anything more than this about the situation with Technoblade, but I feel it's important to say.

take care of yourself. drink water, eat a snack or a meal when you can. do something comforting for yourself. please avoid what could upset you over this. reach out to friends and loved ones, tell someone you care about them. be there for each other.

note - check the replies for our Discord if you would like someone to talk to.

20 notes - Posted June 30, 2022

I came up with a new pronoun set, and I figured I'd put it out there for those who would like to use them!

they aren't based around any specific existing thing, but they are rather special to us. I've been getting very much so vibes of like, phoenixes and royalty from them.

- phe/phex/phel/phexself -

phe went to the store.

I am friends with phex.

that is phel cat.

I would ask that these pronouns only be used by plural folks, as they are ones I made for our system as a whole, for our collective pronouns, and feel rather personal and connected to our plurality. whether using them as a collective or as an individual alter, if you consider yourself plural, you are allowed to use these pronouns!

DNI if anti-endogenic. do not use these pronouns if you believe that endogenic systems don't exist.

do not screenshot to "cringe"/"faking system" type things.

this post and these pronouns are not a joke.

43 notes - Posted June 1, 2022

anger holders get a lot of stigma surrounding them, so we wanted to make this post.

to all anger holders:

you are loved. you are important.

you play a very important role, that we think you should be proud of. it's okay if you're not proud of it. but we are proud of you.

you are not evil. you are not wrong. you are not a ticking time bomb.

you are valid, you are loved, you are wanted.

you are more than just your role, but your role is still important. an important job, that isn't always easy to handle.

even if you are not proud of yourself, we are proud of you.

it's okay if you don't always handle your anger in the most appropriate or healthy ways. I encourage you to try and learn healthy coping mechanisms, but that's difficult. it's okay and entirely normal to slip up.

you are allowed to be angry. it's healthy.

your role is important.

and you, as an individual, are important.

85 notes - Posted December 8, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

hello! are YOU (or anyone you know) interested in a DSMP AU RP?

our attempt at making an RP that's relatively chill and low stress, with a comfortable environment! as such, the server is "ask to join".

15+, explicitly safe for systems of any origin! (aka - no anti-endos.)

we, the owner, are an active lurker on the Purpled fan side of Tumblr, and lurk in the Dreblr side of Tumblr. we're also being careful about keeping Discourse and negativity OUT of the server.

the server itself focuses on mostly chat based RP, as though all of the characters are in a Discord server of their own! however, there are also RP channels for "physical" settings!

as a note, all RP interactions are done using Tupper, so using that bot is a requirement - we apologize if because of this you can't join, but it helps us avoid confusion.

this is the current character list, anyone without an account tagged next to them is open to claim! (please check the base post itself if you see a reblog of this that isn't from us, as we will do our best to update this to make sure it properly shows who is taken.)

See the full post

221 notes - Posted July 31, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #sky of royals #this was a PAIN IN THE ASS to find ndhwjsnsns

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blueberry-hates-ships · 4 years ago

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Old stuff of mine

OuterKiller is abusive

Setty (Sans x Betty) is abusive, no one can change my kind

#anti sanscest #anti outerkiller #anti setty #anti abusive ships

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after-skies-ananthology · 6 years ago

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I'm an astronaut in the President's new space force, something isn't right

BLACK SKY WARS

the first part

approximately 5 years After Skies Event

You’ve probably read the description of a guy like me before. I graduated from the Air Force Academy top of my class. Got my choice of slots for undergrad pilot training. Ran track and field at the Academy. Boxed. 4.0 GPA. AM-490 course. Father was VCSAF. Uncle and grandpa were both MAJCOM commanders. President’s Hundred. Et cetera. Et cetera. Et cetera. Long story short, after flying Strike Eagles and Raptors for seven years, I was selected to become an American astronaut. But before my training was over, things began to change.

About half a decade ago, a Homelander-controlled Congress passed the New Space National Security Act in the face of severe disapproval from the Department of the Air Force, the Alliancers, YPP, and FPML. The Space Corps created by the bill was from the outset designed to have a Marine Corps-like relationship with the Air Force. It would be formed over a five year period as a staggered merger between the Army’s SMDC, Air Force Space Command, and the Navy’s SPAWAR while eventually absorbing the Naval Satellite Operations Center, the U.S. Reconnaissance Office (which in turn pissed off the Alliancers even more), and NASA’s Astronaut Corps. This is where I come in.

It was no secret among my class of prospective astronauts that the final neutering of the nation’s storied space agency was just around the corner, creeping like a wild fox in a house of sleeping hens. The expectation was that we would be rolled into the Space Corps either after graduation from training or just before its completion. Even after the Homeland Party lost control of both houses to a coalition of its rivals, the constant inability of that coalition to agree on terms when it came to most issues meant that they would be no threat to the space service’s existence. The fact that, at the same time, the Homeland Party was able to secure the presidency cemented the inevitability of its ascendance. Our new commander-in-chief - “Mad” Frank Monterrey, the man famous for his fierce public championing of loathed defense projects like the F-35, ASAT development, absolute national missile defense, and countless others, had been a major investor in NASA’s 21st century rival. Expanded Resources and Aerospace Services, also known as ERAS. The company responsible for initial human moon basing efforts, hand in hand in “coopetition” with the China National Space Administration.

The establishment of the Armstrong and Sea of Tranquility settlements was a source of renewed hope and lust for the future on the planet’s surface. Although things were certainly tense at times, and while both nations were most definitely not friends, the Sino-American rivalry was seen by most in the middle at the time as fundamentally different from the Cold War. Monterrey couldn’t have disagreed with this sentiment more. Although he hated them, and even campaigned on anti-Chinese sentiment, he understood what the initial partnership ERAS had created with the Chinese meant for the future of America in space.

He also knew, when the time was right, that he would crush the proverbial throat of the Chinese space presence. As our class completed our required training, me and a few of my peers had been invited to a seminar held in wine country put on by the International Air Combat Study that would cover the future of space development and militarization. Attendees would include NASA officials, their Chinese and Japanese counterparts, senior officers and NCOs from the U.S. Air Force, Space Corps, and Navy, representatives of the People’s Liberation Army, and most significantly - the President of the United States. It would be here that President Monterrey would attempt to humiliate and infuriate the Chinese delegation by announcing the American policy primer on Astropolitik on the last day of the seminar.

In his closed door statement, with PLA officers watching on in steely anger, the President made clear that the United States viewed itself as the arbiter of space and would only be at peace with purely civilian developments and endeavors by foreign nations. The message was now clear, the United States would no longer accept or tolerate the militarization of space by any nation other than itself. “A Monroe Doctrine in orbit.” One headline called it that same evening. The anger felt by this announcement within China, and even in Japan which hadn’t expected such an announcement, was compounded by the events of the day before.

The chief executive of ERAS, and good friend of the President, had announced in an interview with Slice Weekly World the successful completion of humanity’s first asteroid mining operation. About an hour later, a different ERAS spokesperson would quietly confirm over email with a reporter that the company would begin to gradually limit its cooperation with the CNSA with the eventual goal of cutting them off completely. This would most assuredly put the future of the Sea of Tranquility into question. A month before, the Chinese had openly condemned being abruptly left out of the New America habitation project (the colonization of the Kordylewski Dust Satellites via the relocation of hollowed out/previously mined asteroids to Lagrange point 5). The entire situation, when taking Earthly geopolitics into account, was like throwing salt onto an open wound. In an acid shower.

The seminar was over. The damage, or progress made, was done. I stepped out of the back of my ride and into the hotel entrance where I was staying, giving the driver an extra tip before he left. The hotel was a nice one by government travel card standards. All rooms featured a view of one of the two courtyards, one sporting a fire pit, a picturesque grassy couple of acres in the back adjacent to the pool (presumably for weddings), a small creek further back from that with numerous sidewalks for strolls and even a bridge over the stream to a small park. Plenty of statues as well, the attempted style of which I couldn’t discern. Perhaps they were going for an ancient Greek, sophisticated style to everything but I don’t possess the class or taste to reliably provide an answer.

Behind the reception desk sat a young girl, likely in her early 20s. Raven hair, brown eyes. Some of the most doe-like I’ve ever seen. She was quite distracting, actually. Those porcelain legs of hers crossed and presented so minxily to those passing by her workspace didn’t help either. She looked up from her desktop monitor, saw me through her bespectacled gaze, smiled slightly and called out to me. “Mr. Connolley?” I looked behind and around me for a second, I knew she was talking to me but for some reason this little girl managed to slightly intimidate me. “M-Mr. Connolley? Right?” She asked again.

“Yes!” I responded happily. She smiled brighter now, comforting me somewhat, as if she melted my insides with her grin. My guard was down now, and I somehow detected hers was too as I smiled back. “Sorry I have real bad hearing sometimes, being around jet engines all the time can do that.”

“No problem sir! I apologize for calling you out like that.” She said sheepishly.

“Not at all gorgeous.“ I complimented her, the girl’s cheeks turning red. “...did you have something for me?” I asked.

“Yes sir, some of your friends wanted me to notify you that the briefing will be within the next hour in room 241.”

I looked at her, puzzled. “Briefing? Friends? What, was it Lt. Jacob or Lt. Giser? Why wouldn’t they just tell me?”

Now she was confused. “No sir, not those two, umm...“ The lovely girl fiddled with her post-it notes. “...A Sergeant Horace and a Petty Officer Gregory. Two women.” She stated to me.

“Two women? I don’t... Hmm, alright then. Thank you.”

She smiled again, “Of course, I hope all goes well.”

I turned as if to walk away, but caught myself and asked - “Mind if I know your name? Don’t mean to impose or anything, but I leave tomorrow and I’d regret never learning it considering how gorgeous you are.”

Now her face was completely flushed, and her smile now nervous. “… Poinsettia.” She said quietly at first, but then clearing her throat and stating it again. “Poinsettia.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Poinsettia? That’s definitely unique. But lovely all the same, as you are.”

She laughed. “Thank you. You can call me Setty though, that’s what my friends call me. My mom was a florist and loves Christmas, so to her it made sense. I always thought it was kind of a gyp though, my sister got a normal name like Constance.” I noticed the nervousness in her laugh as she said that.

I reassured her, “Well, I’d rather be talking to a Poinsettia than a Constance right now.”

She looked down, flattered. “Thank you.“ And looked back up. “Hope we see each other again.”

I responded back, “Maybe we will. Have a good night. Setty.” And let her be.

A little bit later I had finally gotten out of my Blues and had a few drinks, and asked Jakey and Giser if they had heard about this ‘briefing’. They said they had, but were told it wasn’t until tomorrow. Also, the people who were going to be briefing them were two other females with completely different names. Zero warning. Zero explanation. Something bizarre was going on, which put me on edge for the rest of the hour. The both of them came with me to 241, just to be safe due to how weird it was. I knocked on the door. No answer. Knocked once more. No answer again. Just as we were about to turn to the left and back down the hall, a smokey but soothing feminine voice interrupted us from our right. “Lieutenant.” I looked. Two tall women in what seemed to be Class B uniforms, both in skirts, which was becoming a rare sight in the military these days. The one in front was Navy with Petty Officer 1st Class rank. The one behind her was wearing the new preliminary uniform of the Space Corps.

The Navy girl stuck her hand out, “I’m Petty Officer Gregory, this is Space Systems Sergeant Horace. We were sent by the Strike Division to brief you.“ I looked at her with a thousand yard stare for a minute.

She persisted. “This is about the transition. And other issues.”

She looked at Jakey and Giser. “You two don’t need to be here sirs. This is just for Lt. Connolley.”

They looked at each other, and looked at me. “We’ll see you Mike.” They said hesitantly.

“A-...alright.” I said back, uncomfortable.

The room wasn’t very well lit. Just a single lamp in the far left corner providing the space with orange tinted illumination. The redhead, Sergeant Horace, turned another one on near the table next to the bed. The Petty Officer motioned me to sit down as the Sergeant collected some vanilla folders. The Petty Officer kicked her heels off by the corner of the bed and sat down next to me.

She said to her companion, “Jess you mind stirring us up something?”

“Yes ma’am. Don’t mind if I do.” The Sergeant affirmed.

“Get the Lieutenant something as well.” She further instructed. “He’ll need it.”

I loosened my shoulders up a bit, staring at the documents enclosed on the table top. “Just what is this about exactly? If it’s about the transition, where are the Space Corps people I usually talk to? And why a ‘briefing’?” I demanded.

She rolled her eyes slightly and drew some breath in. “Look sir. Let me ask you this. Did your OIC over at the 50th give you any idea what this may be about?”

“No, not at all. He just said we had been invited to this seminar.” The Sergeant placed a drink in front of me along with the Sodaco can she used to make it.

“In case you need a chaser.” I became somewhat offended at that implication. She laughed, “Sorry sir, it’s not like I know if you’re a lightweight or not.” I groaned at her.

“He hasn’t told me jack shit.” I reiterated.

“I see. I knew he’d puss out of telling you.“ This just keeps getting more and more curious, I thought.

“Jess, you mind?” She pointed at the stacks of folders on the table.

“Mmhmm” the redhead replied.

She began to open them, carefully taking out what they wanted me to see and nothing more. Schematics, technical information, old Polaroid photographs, engineer’s notes, performance evaluations, all referencing Detachment 3 of the Air Force Flight Test Center. “Dreamland.” I said under my breath as my eyes were allowed to soak these images into my brain. All of them featuring a spade-like spacecraft (or what I assumed to be a spacecraft) and its mothership, which noticeably resembled the ill-fated XB-70 as if it were its forgotten love child from another continent. The former was referred to in these documents as the “Blackstar, Experimental Orbital Vehicle”, while the latter was labeled as “Brilliant Buzzard, SR-3”. I felt like a little kid who found his dad’s Playboys under the bed. I had to forcefully break my gaze from it in order to ask her, “Why are you showing me this, and why are you showing me this here of all places? Shouldn’t we be in a SCIF right now?”

She took one of the photos out of my hand. “Sir, if you even tried to think about this vehicle outside of this location without permission, you’d be halfway to Guantanamo before the neurons and synapses in your brain even knew what happened.”

The redhead piped in, “You’ve been under careful watch since you left Cape Canaveral. We’re both assigned to the Air Force Special Activities Center as its token Space Corpsmen. Same goes for certain people at the seminar, waiters and baristas you’ve interacted with, drivers...”

Petty Officer Gregory finished her sentence, “Cute hotel receptionists with long legs and funny names. This situation is under our control Sir.”

This was a startling implication to say the least. I felt like something was crawling beneath my skin.

She put her hand on my forearm to reassure me and said “It’s nothing to worry about sir. We don’t suspect you of anything. What we’re about to ask of you is of grave importance to the national security and power of the United States going forward.”

I asked her, “Then just explain to me what the hell it is you want me to do. I take it you want me to fly this thing?”

She pulled back and took a swig of her mix as I spoke - “Essentially. You and the other two are getting rolled into the Corps sooner than the rest of your class for the mission you’ll be undertaking. I’m sure you’re already familiar with the upgraded, manned version of the Mystery already?” She asked.

I said, “Yes, the MS-1B. The OIC has been quite excited about what we’re going to be able to do with it once me and the guys are assigned to the Leopards.”

She cut me off before I could finish saying the name of the squadron. “Lt. Jacob and Lt. Giser will be going to the 54th, where they’ll be working with the B. You however, will be going to the 7th Orbital Operations Squadron in order to directly cooperate with the Special Projects Division in the employment of the XOV.”

She took another sip of her drink as her compatriot finished her sentence for her with the word - “Major.”

“Excuse me? I just made the list for Captain barely a few weeks ago.” I explained, the Sergeant shook her head and reiterated.

“And you’ll be a Major when you enter the Corps. Similarly, Jacob and Giser will be promoted early to Captain as well. Consider it a compensation bonus for all three of you, in light of the risk you’ll be undertaking when you’re up there.”

“Risk? I mean other than the usual considerations, what’s so uniquely risky about flying this thing.” I asked, unsettled again. Things were simply getting more and more bizarre.

“Nothing in particular”, the Petty Officer added, “It’s actually quite old, never went into full production, just a curious Blackbird replacement the Groom Lake people didn’t get much utility out of. They got tired of fucking around with it, so as one of our first hurrahs into orbit, our young service is going to get to decommission it. Under fire. That’s why we’re promoting you, as incentive to take on the mission. We weren’t considering it before the last couple of days, but due to exigent circumstances it was found to be the most prudent option to offer it to you.”

“What the fuck do you mean under fire? Are you talking about combat? We’ve only simulated space-to-space so far. Hell we’ve only simulated counterspace for that matter.” I was beginning to raise my voice.

She flattened her hand and gestured for me to calm down. “Well, yes and no.“ She said softly, beginning to sound a bit more raspy in her voice. She tossed a few photographs of a Chinese spaceplane my way. These were taken more recently, as I inferred that they must have been shot with a digital camera. However, they were still incredibly grainy. I could make out a small spaceplane in the middle of a flurry of space debris and large rocky objects. The craft resembled the MS-1A but it was too hard to tell.

Sergeant Horace interrupted my concentration, “That’s a PLA Shenlong about 30 hours ago.”

“What’s wrong with it? Did we shoot at it or something?” I asked.

“Yes,” PO Gregory informed me, “the 668th was directing a pair of F-15s out of California on a short notice ASAT mission.“

My mind began racing, were we trying to go to war already? “So... you guys shot at it? Why before the President announced his new policy?” I asked.

She shook her head again, implying my assumption was wrong. “We weren’t trying to shoot at it. We were shooting at something else entirely.” She tapped on an amorphous object barely visible in the background of one of the photos. I looked up from the enigma, my eyes meeting her piercing gaze as she spoke as if she were a cold-blooded python consuming a small mammal.

“Sir, let’s just cut to the chase - you’re going to take this promotion, you’re going to escort Jacob and Giser to New America, and you three are going to kill the sole survivor stuck on that Shenlong - and, you’re going to do it all before that ‘thing’ decides to kill you.”

I'm an astronaut in the President's new space force, something isn't right

#black sky wars #after skies

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jafartamam12 · 2 years ago

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Learning English (29)

The impact of Without Setting Boundaries

We tend to overshare our secrets with other people, and this is a dangerous

We feel guilty for long term, while it all not our fault

We feel entangled by what did by other people across our boundaries

We feel more dependent on other people, all our neds most of them we need other people to embody them

Wee feel trauma about our past mistake, and we forced to become naturally as guilty and as cause from our past mistake

We feel over anti-dependent to other, proven by our traits to ignore all other services and feel uncomfortable if someone serves us

4 Wrong Steps to Setting Boundaries

Too passive for saying a boundaries to other people

too aggressive for saying a boundaries to other people

Too passive and aggressive for saying a boundaries to other people

Manipulate other people about boundaries, with saying that boundaries like this and like that, while reality not like that

3 Appropriate Ways To Setting Boundaries

So, responding 4 wrong steps to settiing a boundaries above, the author of Set Boundaries said, we must follow 3 right ways to setting boundaries.

Make sure our boundaries is clear and abvious

Make sure our boundaries conveyed directly to targetted people and tell him assertively

Make sure we know impact from this step, which is we can ignored and denied and feel guilty, implant in our soul that every step has risk and the risk from setting boundaries is being ignored even silenced for without reason.

#learningenglish #englishlanguage #americandream #atomichabits #onestepcloser #dontbreakthechain

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trekkingholidaysmorocco · 3 years ago

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10 Best Hiking Trails in Morocco - Trekking Holidays Morocco

10 Best Hiking Trails in Morocco

Atlas Mountains range: Are you planning a trip to the Maghreb? So don't miss out on discovering the Atlas Mountains!

A mountain range in North Africa, the Atlas spans three countries in the region: Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. 2,500 kilometers long, the massif forms a barrier between the Mediterranean Sea and the Sahara. Its Moroccan part is probably the most interesting. It is shared between three massifs: the Anti, the Middle and the High Atlas. The latter attracts most of the visitors. Many come to climb Mount Toubkal, its highest peak, which rises to 4,167 meters.

The Atlas Mountains are among the must-see places to visit in this region. No matter what country you are going to, be sure to visit it. Magnificent landscapes, canyons, oases and rivers await you. So to help you on your adventures, in this guide we will cover all the ways to discover the Atlas Mountains.

Where is Mount Toubkal?

One of the most beautiful mountains of the High Atlas Mountains chain, which passes in the countries of the Maghreb, as Mount Toubkal or Mount Toubkal is the highest mountain peak in the Atlas Mountains chain, which has a height of 4165 meters and is 60 km south of Marrakesh. It has two types of slopes, The first is the high slopes to which most people tend to practice climbing, which are covered with snow in the winter season, so people practice skiing, and the second is the low or lower slopes, which individuals go to for recreation and enjoying the scenery, you will need two full days to reach the top of a mountain Toubkal and the landing thereof. On the first day, you will leave from the village of Imlil in the morning and walk for about five hours to the shelter, where you will spend the night. Then on the second day you will go to the summit in a period of four to five hours, then head down to the shelter, then return to Imlil, the best period to climb Mount Toubkal is late April to October and great care must be taken when climbing the mountain.

10 Best Hiking Trails in Morocco

Toubkal Massif Explorer 8 Days

Toubkal Classic Trek 8 Days

Toubkal winter climb 5 Days

Toubkal Experience Trek 3 Days

Toubkal Ascent 2 Days

Azzaden Valley Overnight Trek

Private overnight Trek Atlas Mountains

Imnane Valley - Berber Villages Trek 2 days

Berber villages Trek 3 days

From Imlil to Setti Fadma 4 days / 3 nights

The high Atlas Mountains Hike

Berber Villages and Atlas Mountains Trek 6 days

Real Hike Berber Villages 4 Days

Morocco treks

Riad Atlas Imlil

MTB Morocco

Voyages Expeditions Morocco

Combined Atlas Sahara Desert Tour

Camel Treks Experience Atlas Mountain

Fez To Marrakech Via Merzouga

Sahara Desert Tour 6 Days

Morocco Discovery 11 Days

Imperial Cities Of Morocco In 8 Days / 7 Nights

Imlil Valley Day Trip

Ourika Valley Day Trip

Tinmel Mosque Day Trip

Ouzoud Waterfalls Day Trip

Ait Ben Haddou And Telouet Day Trip

Agafay Desert Day Trip

Morocco Treks

Imlil Valley Day Trip From Marrakech

Ourika Valley Day Trip From Marrakech

Tinmel Mosque And Ijoukak Day Trip From Marrakech

Ouzoud Waterfall Day Trip From Marrakech

Ait Benhaddou And Telouat Day Trip From Marrakech

Agafay Desert Day Trip From Marrakech

Morocco Treks

Morocco Discovery 11 Days

Imperial Cities Of Morocco In 8 Days / 7 Nights

Imlil Valley Day Trip

Ourika Valley Day Trip

Tinmel Mosque Day Trip

Combined Atlas Sahara Desert Tour

Camel Treks Experience Atlas Mountain

Fez To Marrakech Via Merzouga

Sahara Desert Tour 6 Days

Imnane Valley - Berber Villages Trek 2 days

Berber villages Trek 3 days

From Imlil to Setti Fadma 4 days / 3 nights

The high Atlas Mountains Hike

Jbel Ayachi Discovery 6 days – Trekking.

Central High Atlas 7 Days - Trekking.

Morocco Students Package 7 Days – Trekking.

Berber Villages & Toubkal Ascent 6 days – Trekking.

Ourika valley to Toubkal Massif 6 days – Trekking.

Camel Treks Experience Atlas Mountain – Trekking.

Roses Valley 6 days From Marrakech – Trekking.

Jbel Saghro Discovery - Nomads Hike 6 Days – Trekking.

Jebel Aklim Expedition 7 Days – Trekking.

Morocco Treks - Trekking

Trekking Tours , Sahara Desert trips, Camel ride, 4x4 tours , Cultural Tours, Imperial cities , Berber villages, nomadic lives, Mountain Biking, Day trips from Marrakech,Riad Atlas Imlil ,

#trekkinginmorocco #trekking #mountain #outdoors #hiking #backpacking #trails #submission #atlas mountains #mtb in morocco #Toubkal #boucherouite

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italreport · 4 years ago

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Acate. Screaning anti Covid e rappresentazione Dramma Sacro i “Setti Parti”: notizie confortanti.

Salvatore Cultraro, Acate (Rg), 29 marzo 2021.- Dati confortanti quelli emersi dall’ultimo screening relativo alla eventuale positività al Covid-19, effettuato domenica 28 marzo in Piazza Calvario. Come notificato dal sindaco, dottor Giovanni Di Natale, su 222 tamponi rapidi, di cui 17 appartenenti alla popolazione scolastica, è stato riscontrato un solo caso di positività. Una notizia…

Acate. Screaning anti Covid e rappresentazione Dramma Sacro i “Setti Parti”: notizie confortanti. was originally published on ITALREPORT

#ACATE #Covid #RG #Sette Parti #SICILIA

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letssafari · 4 years ago

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Taking a day trip is a great way to escape from the bustle of the city and explore quieter locations. Head for the breathtaking Atlas Mountains where you’ll have the chance to hike around Imlil and Toubkal National Parc, view the beautiful Ouzoud Waterfalls, meet with the local people, and enjoy a walk along Ourika Valley and Setti Fatma's natural splendor. Or explore the beautiful seaside town of Essaouira by wandering among the sun-dabbled fortress walls as the waves crash nearby.#daytrip #tours #tourguide #travelcompany #tourism #travelgrams #wonderlust #viajes #guiadeturismo #travelblogger #travelgirls #travelguide #tripadviser #fodorstravel #ustravel #letsgo #letstravel #mountains #landscape (at Anti-Atlas) https://www.instagram.com/p/CFCS3JTMaXD/?igshid=1e7u9w3op8njj

#daytrip #tours #tourguide #travelcompany #tourism #travelgrams #wonderlust #viajes #guiadeturismo #travelblogger #travelgirls #travelguide #tripadviser #fodorstravel #ustravel #letsgo #letstravel #mountains #landscape

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eretzyisrael · 7 years ago

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JULY 11, 2017 10:49 AM

Are Biased Textbooks Turning Young Americans Against Israel?

by Rafael Medoff / JNS.org

Illustrative. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

JNS.org – According to some experts, anti-Israel bias in the textbooks used by many American high schools may be to blame for the decrease in sympathy for Israel among young adults.

According to the Brand Israel Group, only 54 percent of US college students lean more toward Israelis than the Palestinians, down from 73 percent in 2010. The decrease was even sharper among Jewish college students, dropping from 84 percent to 57 percent.

“The problem starts in high school,” Dr. Sandra Alfonsi, the founder of Hadassah’s “Curriculum Watch” division, told JNS.org. “There’s no doubt [that] the lack of sympathy for Israel on college campuses today is at least partly the result of several generations of teenagers being educated with textbooks that are slanted against Israel.”

‘Unabashed propagandizing’

One of the most controversial texts used in high schools around the country is the Arab World Studies Notebook, a 540-page volume authored by Audrey Parks Shabbas. Shabbas heads Arab World and Islamic Resources and School Services, a curriculum publisher that seeks to promote a positive image of Arabs and Muslims in US schools.

After parents in Anchorage, Alaska, complained to their local board of education in 2004 about the book’s slant against Israel, the American Jewish Committee (AJC) prepared a 30-page analysis of the textbook. The AJC found it to be riddled with “overt bias and unabashed propagandizing,” such as depicting Israel as the aggressor in every Arab-Israeli war, and praising Muslim conquerors throughout the ages for their “gentle treatment of civilian populations.”

As a result, the Anchorage Board of Education removed the Notebook from the local high school curriculum. School authorities in Tulsa, Oklahoma, have also withdrawn the text.

Shabbas has claimed that the Notebook has been distributed to more than 10,000 teachers, and “if each notebook teaches 250 students a year over 10 years, then you’ve reached 25 million students.”

“The most important statistic is the number of workshops that Shabbas has given to instruct teachers in how to use the book,” Curriculum Watch’s Alfonsi said. “She has conducted hundreds of such three-day teacher-training sessions.” Shabbas’s website names 211 schools where she ran teacher workshops from 2000-2006. Other years are not listed.

Shabbas did not respond to requests for comment from JNS.org.

The Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA) recently published a 108-page monograph, “Indoctrinating Our Youth,” which describes how high schools in the Boston suburb of Newton have been using biased texts such as the Arab World Studies Notebook, and also are inviting anti-Israel speakers to address their students.

One controversy began in 2011, when a Newton South High School parent complained about a passage from the Notebook that accused Israel of torturing and murdering hundreds of Palestinian women. Other parents soon joined the protests. Matt Hills, vice chair of the Newton School Committee, dismissed the critics as “McCarthyesque.”

In early 2012, Newton Superintendent of Schools David Fleishman said that the Notebook had been removed from the curriculum because it was “outdated.” But an investigation by Americans for Peace and Tolerance (APT), a Boston-based activist group, found that the Notebook was still being used in Newton as late as the 2013-2014 school year.

The dispute has been complicated by the refusal of Newton school authorities to identify which Israel-related materials were being used by teachers. Many school districts around the country list their curriculum materials on their websites. APT President Charles Jacobs told JNS.org that his group “will continue to build support for a policy of transparency, so that parents and citizens can know what is being taught to Newton’s students.”

In response to a request for copies of these materials, Fleishman said that the requester would need to pay $3,643 to cover photocopying expenses. Eventually, a Freedom of Information request filed by community activists forced the release of some of the materials.

Newton Mayor Setti Warren, a member of the nine-person School Committee, attended committee meetings on the textbooks issue, but did not actively participate in the discussions, according to community members. The mayor, who is now a candidate for the Democratic nomination for Massachusetts governor, did not respond to requests for comment from JNS.org.

Several mainstream Jewish organizations in Boston, including the local chapter of the Anti-Defamation League, initially denied that biased materials were being used in local schools. They also criticized the APT for organizing protests against the Newton school authorities. Later, the New England ADL changed its position, agreeing that the Arab World Studies Notebook and another anti-Israel text, A Muslim Primer, should not have been used in schools.

The CAMERA monograph reports that as a result of the controversy, “there has been some change in the selection of materials” by Newton officials and “more careful vetting of them.” Yet some of the supplemental materials that Newton teachers use “continue to favor fringe perspectives,” according to the study.

Steven Stotsky, the monograph’s author, told JNS.org that the situation “remains unresolved,” pointing out that Newton North High School hosted another anti-Israel speaker in June. Since no curriculum materials have been shown to the parents since 2014, “it is impossible to know” if any of the anti-Israel books are still being used, Stotsky said.

Controversies around the country

Other texts have been at the center of similar controversies elsewhere around the US in recent years.

Parents in Tennessee’s Williamson County complained to school authorities in 2013 over a textbook called The Cultural Landscape: An Introduction to Human Geography. In a section on the reasons for the rise of terrorism, the book asks: “If a Palestinian suicide bomber kills several dozen Israeli teenagers in a Jerusalem restaurant, is that an act of terrorism or wartime retaliation against Israeli government policies and army actions?”

The protests to the book, which were led by Christian pro-Israel activist Laurie Cardoza-Moore and supported by the Jewish Federation of Nashville, prompted the Tennessee state legislature to take steps to ensure greater parental involvement in the selection of textbooks.

Further, the book’s publisher, Pearson Education, removed the suicide bomber passage from subsequent editions. But Cardoza-Moore told JNS.org that her campaign was “only a partial victory, because ‘The Cultural Landscape’ contains other biased statements about Israel that were not removed.”

In Georgia’s Sumter County, Campbell Middle School parent Hal Medlin complained in 2011 about a class assignment featuring a fictitious letter from a Saudi woman who defended Islamic sharia law and her husband’s polygamy, on the grounds that she was being “cared for” by her husband. Conservative activist Pamela Geller, who joined the protests against the Campbell Middle School assignment, told JNS.org that the letter was “an outrageous whitewash of the subjugation of women by Islam.”

The curriculum unit also included a document in which a pro-Palestinian activist suggested that terrorist attacks against Israeli Jews are “understandable.”

In neighboring Henry County, school authorities responded to complaints about the text by withdrawing it from the curriculum. Sumter County officials took no such action, but Sharon Coletti — president of the InspirEd curriculum developer, which had prepared the controversial materials for Georgia public schools — told JNS.org that “the topics of women’s rights and the West Bank have largely been dropped [from statewide curricula], so we removed” the texts.

Parents at a high school in Pittsburgh also complained to Curriculum Watch’s Alfonsi in 2007 about a teacher’s use of Habibi, a young adult novel by Naomi Shihab Nye. Alfonsi found that the book has a “strongly pro-Palestinian slant, including extreme accusations about ‘Israeli oppression.’” The fact that the book was being used in an Advancement Placement English class “meant that it was indoctrinating some of the brightest kids in the school,” she said. As a result of Alfonsi’s discussions with school officials, Habibi was dropped from the class’s curriculum.

“The problem is that for every school that removes an anti-Israel text, there are a hundred more that are continuing to use it,” Alfonsi said. “When I began this work 20 years ago, we were reviewing curriculum materials used for the 6th to 12th grades. Now we are seeing anti-Israel in bias in texts going all the way down to the 4th grade. I’m concerned that many in the Jewish community still do not recognize how serious this problem is.”

#Israel #USA #US Colleges #Bias and propaganda #Textbooks

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joshuajacksonlyblog · 6 years ago

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McAfee Labs Discover Russian Crypto Mining Malware, Correlation with Monero Price

McAfee Labs has announced the discovery of WebCobra, a Russian coin mining malware which explores victim’s computing power.

Security researcher Kapil Khade also found that a correlation between the prevalence of miner malware and changes in the price of Monero (XMR).

McAfee Labs Says Crypto Miner Malware Follows Price of Monero

The threat research division of McAfee, a leading computer security software company owned by Bitcoin enthusiast John McAfee, found what it considers to be an uncommon and hard to detect cryptocurrency mining malware.

Uncommon in that it drops a different miner depending on the configuration of the machine it infects.

Khade, with the collaboration from colleagues Oliver Devane and Deepak Setty, analyzed the Russian-born threat, dubbed WebCobra.

The malware steals victims’ machine resources as it increases power consumption while it runs silently in the background and mines cryptocurrency. Once infected, the computer warns the user of “performance degradation,” but is unable to detect the presence of the threat without up-to-date anti-malware software.

Khade argued in his post that the increase in the value of digital currencies has led to a significant increase in the use of malware for the purpose of cryptocurrency mining. The Russian crypto jacking malware seems to have a special appetite for Monero (XMR). The digital asset known for its privacy features is priced above $100 after having peaked at nearly $500 in early January 2018.

“The increase in the value of cryptocurrencies has inspired cybercriminals to employ malware that steals machine resources to mine crypto coins without the victims’ consent,” Khade notes.

The researcher shared a chart comparing the price of Monero from January 2016 to July 2018 against “coin miner malware samples.” The graphic indicates a clear correlation between the two, with unique mining malware reaching its all-time high one month after the burst of the cryptocurrency bubble earlier this year.

The use of coin mining malware seems to have picked up most recently despite a continued drop in the price of Monero and cryptocurrencies in general.

The uncommon cryptocurrency mining malware is most prevalent in the United States, Brazil, and South Africa, according to the McAfee Labs heat map of WebCobra infections from September 9–13. The software security company recently examined WebCobra. The file infector silently drops and installs the Cryptonight miner or Claymore’s Zcash miner, Khade explained.

“The main dropper is a Microsoft installer that checks the running environment. On x86 systems, it injects Cryptonight miner code into a running process and launches a process monitor. On x64 systems, it checks the GPU configuration and downloads and executes Claymore’s Zcash miner from a remote server.”

Related Reading: Checking Crypto Prices on Your Mac? Watch Out for Malware

Featured image from Shutterstock.

The post McAfee Labs Discover Russian Crypto Mining Malware, Correlation with Monero Price appeared first on NewsBTC.

from Cryptocracken Tumblr https://ift.tt/2PqbHCN via IFTTT

#IFTTT #Cryptocracken Tumblr

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brettzjacksonblog · 6 years ago